Dealing with regaining weight

anb3600

I was 11 stone in 2015 when I was 15 and dropped to 8 stone 5 when I was 16. I realise now that it was a rapid change to my body and that I lost the weight in an unhealthy way- restricting my calories and foods that I ate. I’m now 18 and I’ve been putting a lot of the weight back on these past few months due to stress, and I’m already 10 stone. I was happy with a maintenance weight of 9 stone and keep trying to get back to that weight, but I can’t stop gaining. It’s like my body has gone into reverse and instead of starving my body I’m constantly hungry and unable to stop thinking about food. It’s making me depressed and there’s no way that I can lose any more weight- my body won’t let me. I try to go into a calorie deficit of 200 calories one day, and then binge the next day because my body is just so hungry. Also I feel like I eat more on the day’s that I exercise, but I’m exercising to try to be in a deficit!! I don’t know what to do. Any tips would be great.

wifeoferp

So sorry you are struggling. I would encourage you to make sure you are eating plenty of protein which will help your body feel more satiated. Also make sure to drink plenty of liquids. I know some people will not like this idea but for me, drinking beverages with stevia sweeteners or similar helps to keep the munchies at bay because my body is craving sweets, and gets that craving satisfied with zero calories.
One other tip that helps me is to keep foods that trigger me (and I can’t stop eating) out of my house. Don’t know if that’s possible for you if you are still living with yourself parents and not in charge of the shopping. Good luck!

ElizabethKalmbach

... Are you still growing? I was still growing taller at that age. Actually, I was about 5'1 until I left for college, and sometime during college I got up to nearly 5'5.

Examine and experiment with your macros and see which ones make you feel most full for the longest and pursue those foods. Increased protein seems to help a lot of people. Increased fiber helps others. It's a useful thing to know about yourself, particularly early in life. Logging everything - including "binges" will help you learn about yourself and recognize patterns of behavior that do and do not work for you.

whmscll

Your body WILL lose weight if you burn more calories than you take in. Maybe you’re trying to do it too fast. Perhaps a 200 calorie deficit is too much to start. Maybe lower your deficit. Also perhaps you are doing too much exercise. Maybe reduce that as well to start, especially if what you are doing is mostly cardio. Also look at what you are eating. Yes, calories matter, but so does the quality of what’s in those calories. Are you getting enough protein and FAT in your diet? Healthy fat from nuts, olive oil, avocados, etx. Is super important. It is essential for several important metabolic functions and will also help you feel full longer. Lastly...how much do you drink? Cutting (or even eliminating) alcohol consumption is important to successful weight loss for a lot of people.

staticsplit

I second that at eighteen you might still be growing. Your brain is still developing at 18 too. How tall are you? Are you underweight or a healthy weight? What calories are you aiming for? How much exercise? Without more info it's difficult to advise. When I was 18 I was also trying to get to 9 stone, but at 6 ft that was not ever going to be sustainable for me. Maybe just aim for maintenance/recomp for awhile?

PAV8888

Stop. Try to maintain FIRST. You're not winning by being in a stress inducing spiral.

First stop gaining on a consistent basis and establish a maintenance range and calories.

Then selectively trim fluff (both in your food and, as a consequence, your body/weight)

Don't try to eat less, exercise more, and worry more, all at the same time.

Differentiate between baseline weight level and weight fluctuations such as sodium, hormonal, exercise and other forms of water retention

brenn24179

I am not as hungry if I eat more protein. I gained weight back but as soon as I went low carb, under 100 gr I was able to lose it.

MadisonMolly2017

@jm_1234
Powerful post. Agree 💯 Just awesome.
Takeaway: become very in tune with your body/hunger/energy over time.

+ use 💦 liberally (also to test if hunger is actually thirst.)
+ Exercise if you realize it’s actually boredom/tiredness with awesome peppy music!

Love the science experiment approach!

cheryldumais

The younger you are the more pressure there is to be overly thin. I don't know your body type but that may not be reasonable for you. One other thought I had was that when you lost weight so quickly before you may well have lost some muscle which tends to lower your calorie requirements as muscle burns more calories than fat. I second the recomp idea. It might be worthwhile to try to maintain for now and build some muscle until you know where your body is going to settle. Once you build some muscle it might be easier to lose some of the extra fat you are carrying if you do it slowly and maintain lifting. I am one of those folks who lost alot of weight and now I'm struggling to keep it off because I didn't build muscle while losing. I sincerely regret that. Guess what I'll be working on next year, lol.